Blue Star Enterprises

As the group entered a conference room and sat down, Mr. Baru was the first to speak. "I'll be perfectly honest, Mr. Kane. Your arrival in Ganos has caused quite a stir."

"It has?" Alexander asked in surprise. He knew that was the case in smaller systems, but he had assumed a system as busy as Ganos would be used to such things.

Baru chuckled. "Indeed. While some corporations have their own armed ships, they are rarely seen in such numbers. Even when they are, it is usually a few gunships and maybe a frigate, nothing like what you brought. Having an entire fleet of private military ships arrive inside the system sent the planetary governor into a panic. It took some reassurances from both the Hawks and the STO Navy to calm the man down."

"I'm sorry if my appearance here has caused you any trouble, but can you blame me for coming prepared?" Alexander asked as he sat across from Baru. They had a seat specifically for him, which was nice.

"You need not worry, Mr. Kane. It was hardly an inconvenience. Our planetary governor calls us every time anything unknown occurs, usually even before he reaches out to the STO. Now that the governor knows you aren't a threat, though, you should probably expect him to reach out to you. The man is a consummate worrywart, but he is also a politician, which means he will try to worm his way into your good graces."

Alexander winced at that. Baru didn't know how right he was. On their descent, he had kept in touch with Grace. Vigbrand, his XO, had informed him that the governor had sent a formal invite, requesting his attendance in the capital, Ganos City, for a meeting. Alexander hadn't bothered to respond to the requests because he didn't want to get bogged down in Ganos' politics during his visit to speak with the Hawks, but it seemed like that might not be avoidable.

"Thank you for the heads up, Mr.Baru. I fear your warning is a bit too late. Your governor has been reaching out since we arrived in orbit, but I have no intention of responding."

Baru sighed. "I don't wish to tell you how to operate, Mr. Kane, but if it were me, I would agree to at least meet with the man just to get it over with. The Governor has little actual power within the STO, but if he feels slighted, he could ban your ships from using the hypergate."

Alexander nodded his avatar. "I will consider your words. While I could return to Unokane without using the gate, that would add significant time to our journey. Enough talk about local politics, let's talk about something a bit more interesting. I came here to show you the designs and specifications of your new ships, and I feel like we would both prefer to discuss that."

The meeting with the Hawks was very productive. They loved the capabilities of the Orca-class ships. Alexander was happy to inform them that the vessels would be ready by the time he passed through Ganos on his way back to Unokane.

One of the ships was nearly complete already. They could pick them up at their leisure, but he planned on sending Ramirez along with two of the recently graduated captains to pilot the vessels to Ganos. Once they turned the new ships over to the Hawks, Ramirez would take the BSE crews aboard Tempest for a return trip home.

If the timing was good, Tempest might just join up with the rest of Alexander's fleet for the trip back. That was assuming Alexander wasn't delayed on Earth for too long.

Speaking of delays, Alexander had agreed to meet with the governor after heeding Mr. Baru's advice. He sent a message to the fleet that they would be remaining in the system for a bit longer. Vigbrand would handle crew downtime during their extended stay.

As they exited the headquarters of the Hawks, Alexander turned to Mr. Baru. "Thank you once again for meeting with me and for your advice. If I could make one more request?"

"Certainly," Baru said.

"I want my daughter to experience some of your planet. Nature, animals, that sort of thing. Since I expect to be tied up with your governor, I was hoping the Hawks would be willing to act as her chaperone and guide in my place."

"We would be glad to. I will attach a full team, along with TL Vochenek and Zorina. Is that acceptable?" Baru asked.

Alexander nodded, and the pair shook hands. "More than. Thank you, and thank Captain Bloomright for me." He would have thanked Captain Bloomright himself, but she had been called away on other business shortly after their meeting ended.

"I will, Mr. Kane. If we don't speak again before you depart, have a safe trip."

Alexander nodded his avatar before joining the rest of the group near the car.

"Are we leaving already?" Yulia asked sadly.

"Not yet. I have to meet with the governor, and you are going sightseeing," Alexander replied, perking the girl up.

"Really!" she said excitedly.

"Really," Alexander confirmed with a smile. "Once Zorina drops me off, you will have the rest of the day to visit. Remember what we talked about, though."

Yulia nodded vigorously, her hand unconsciously going to the orb attached to the end of her necklace.

Alexander didn't expect any trouble on Ganos, especially with the Hawks sending additional people to watch over her, but he still felt better knowing she was wearing the field generator.

***

Ezekiel stretched in the hotel room he managed to acquire after Kane had notified Rhys of their extended visit. If he was going to be stuck in the system for more than a day, he wasn't going to do it aboard the Blueridge. While the hotel wasn't the greatest money could buy, it was acceptable. With his current family issues, he couldn't afford a five-star accommodation, and even if he could, Ganos was no Tau Ceti. It wasn't a backwater shithole like Unokane either though, so that was something. Ganos knew how to treat important visitors properly.

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Less than an hour after his arrival, and shortly after Ezekiel had finished a thorough massage and soak in the tub, someone knocked on his door. Annoyance bubbled up within him at the disturbance. He had explicitly asked the hotel not to intrude on his peace and quiet. They could say goodbye to any tips.

"What?" he demanded as he threw open the door, still wearing his towel around his waist. Any further words died before they left his mouth as he stared at the person standing outside his door.

The man strode into the room, forcing Ezekiel to hastily step aside or be knocked over.

Ezekiel's mind finally caught up to the sight of the unexpected visitor. "Brother. To what do I owe the honor?"

His brother glanced around the room, a cold look of scorn on his face. The man was obviously disgusted at the paltry amenities available within the suite. Ezekiel remembered that feeling well. He had felt much the same way when he was first thrust from his family's grace. It was rare when he got to indulge in reminders of what he had lost, even if they weren't as good.

Bartholomew's gaze snapped toward Ezekiel. Ezekiel remembered when that piercing look would make him flinch, but he resisted the temptation now.

"Put on some clothes, looking upon you in this state sickens me," his brother stated without emotion.

Ezekiel would have loved to snap at his brother, but he couldn't afford to offend the man. Barthlomew wouldn't have come here unless it was for something important. The man hadn't bothered to speak with him, let alone visit him in person, since he had been excommunicated.

Swallowing his pride, Ezekiel strode past his brother and into the bathroom to finish getting dressed. He returned a few minutes later, his brother hadn't moved from the spot he had been standing.

"To think someone of our family's blood could sink so low," Bartholomew said in disgust.

Ezekiel could only stand there quietly and take the verbal lashing until his brother was ready to state his purpose.

"Be glad our father was the one responsible for your punishment. Had it been up to me, you would no longer be breathing. Why would you do something so stupid as going against the family?" Bartholomew demanded.

Ezekiel winced slightly at the hatred dripping from his brother's words. The man must have held onto that anger for decades since the incident. He cleared his throat to speak. "I loved her," he said quietly. What he left unsaid was the fact that he thought she loved him back, but she hadn't. She had only used him to get information.

Bartholomew scoffed. "Love is a construct for imbeciles, but considering your actions cost our family trillions of credits after you informed that woman about our plans, it's fitting for you."

"Have you come here just to denigrate me?" Ezekiel asked. He had heard this all before from his father, and the few other family members who still bothered to speak to him from time to time.

Bartholomew scowled at Ezekiel's response. "I would not waste my time with such frivolous pursuits. I am here on behalf of Father, and that is the only reason I am here."

That perked Ezekiel up. Father would not personally involve himself in Ezekiel's affairs unless he planned on changing his excommunicated status. That fleeting sense of hope dwindled as he saw the cruel look in his brother's eyes.

Bartholomew smiled slightly as he saw realization dawn on Ezekiel's face. "That's right, brother. You may yet earn a place back in the family, but it won't be free or easy."

"What must I do?" Ezekiel asked. It didn't matter what they asked of him. He would do anything to return to the life that had been denied to him for so long.

"You are familiar with Alexander Kane, are you not?"

Ezekiel nodded slowly.

"Kane has been disrupting the family business. First, with Omni. While our stake in them is minimal, we still lost money. Father demanded that Omni do something to stop that disruption, and they did, but their response was a weak one. While Father was unhappy with the method, he got the result he wanted. That was until Father learned that Kane had been stealing and redistributing knowledge articles from at least a dozen of our other companies. We have terminated those learning modules, but there is no telling how much damage the man was able to do before that happened."

Ezekiel was confused. Unless the family's interests had shifted significantly since he was last privy to them, the money they made from learning module sales was less than one percent of their GDP. "That is such a small loss, I don't quite follow why Father is so concerned about it."

"Of course you don't. You never did understand the bigger picture," Bartholomew said with a sneer. "You simply have to open your eyes, brother. Look at the ships Kane has brought with him. Have you ever seen vessels like those?"

"No," Ezekiel admitted, "Aren't they just ships with a bit more aesthetically pleasing design to them?"

"No, they aren't, you fool. I've had our assets in the system scan those ships and do an analysis of their hull composition. It matches our own ships. If it wasn't for that fact, I wouldn't be here speaking with you now. We lost two of our gunships and a cargo ship a few years back, and now we know who was responsible. Father wouldn't have cared about a few ships, but the business we lost because of that incident far exceeded what you cost Father with your indiscretions."

Ezekiel almost choked when he heard that. "What? How?"

"That's none of your concern," his brother stated. "All you need to know is that Father is willing to forgive your transgression if you help get rid of Kane."

"Are you mad?" Ezekiel stated. "I can't just walk up to Kane and pull a gun, and even if I could, I don't think it would work."

"We are aware of Kane's condition and certain other rumors. We aren't asking you to kill him."

"Then what?" Ezekiel asked.

"Simply take out the guards, and we will do the rest. Then you will be back in Father's good graces."

"You expect me to kill four guards on Ganos? With what exactly?" Ezekiel knew what they planned to do if their goal wasn't to take out Kane, but he didn't much care. If there was a chance of getting back into the family, he would take it.

"Don't be a fool. Even if Kane has extended his visit, there is not enough time to plan an operation here. You will work with our family assets on Earth. They will get hold of his itinerary and plan the operation. All you have to do is follow orders. Can you do that for once?" Bartholomew asked coldly.

"Why me? If you have assets in place, certainly they could do the same thing."

"We need someone who can get past security without notice. Nobody is going to question a captain if he is carrying a case around."

Ezekiel should have figured his family was aware of his upcoming demotion. "What you're asking of me will get me court-martialed."

"So?" Bartholomew asked. "You'll be done with the STO once the mission is over anyway. And it isn't like they will execute you. At most, you'll have to serve a year in prison. Father will ensure that year is one of the most comfortable you've experienced since before you were excommunicated, or would you prefer to be Dufresne's lapdog for the rest of your life?"

His brother was right, their father would never let the STO execute him. He only had to consider his options for a moment, then he nodded. "I'll do it."

Ezekiel might have hesitated if his position as Vice Admiral were still secure, but he saw little reason to remain part of the STO Navy with Admiral Dufresne having a personal grudge against him because of his relationship with Ezekiel's former fiancée.